Latest Expeditions
Show allAll
Air
Land
Sea
Urban
Backyard
Ambassadors of the Sea in Costa Rica´s Caribbean coast has been developing a community stewardship project: preserve coral reefs as of 2016 and now in 2020 it is grounding after four years of training of its youth to undertake the challenge
2posts
Our project seeks to understand relationships between black bears and humans on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia, Canada towards promoting co-existence between people and our wild neighbors.
0posts
I will be travelling across the Pacific Ocean on SV Paradigme 2 collecting observations for INaturalist. As I sail from California to Hawaï and French Polynesia, I will be taking pictures of wildlife encountered along the journey.
1post
Hotel Los Acantilados, Aca, Deseado, Santa Cruz, Argentina, Jan 1 2009
Shipwreck Archaeology in Patagonia
For centuries Patagonia has played a strategic role in seafaring. Our team conducts research and management of ancient shipwreck remains along the Southernmost waters of the Americas.
Recent Observations
Pollution in Marine Urban Ecosystems
The term 'pollution', contrary to the popular conception that is often focused on macro pollution (plastics and trash), describes a vast array of factors that can have perturbating consequences on living organisms. Basically, anything that is too abundant compared to what is considered normal/optimal is pollution. In Marine Urban Ecosystems (MUE), pollution can be of multiple sources and nature. Macropollutants like plastics and other waste are the most visible for the untrained eye and can be more or less abundant near cities and especially beaches (please don't litter). Urban areas can, however, exert other stresses that can have impacts that are orders of magnitude more important than plastic etc.
Most notably Chemical Pollutants like heavy metals have been shown to exert high toxicity towards the ecosystem. Cadmium, Lead, Copper, Quicksilver are produced in minuscule amounts by diverse human activities but accumulate in the environment. Persistent organic pollutants are produced in a similar manner. Wastewater conveys these chemical pollutants towards the sea where they most often accumulate in the food chain and the sediments. This accumulation concentrates the pollutants in living beings where they can harm the organism.
Biological pollution is considered equally harmful and occurs when a species spreads and reproduces without control, harming the ecosystem. Most often Non-Indigenious Species are considered as biological pollution, but local species can also contribute if they are considered harmful. The disturbed nature or MUEs favours species that use quick growth rates and high reproduction rates with a short lifecycle, which highly advantages species that are likely to become biological pollutants.
More recently, other pollutions gained the attention of the scientific community. Marine Noise and Artificial Light at Night (ALAN) are a recent focus of research and seem to influence the local fauna and flora. Here the effects are more subtle than previously mentioned pollutions but are more difficult to quantify since they mostly influence the behaviour of marine organisms.
The effects of pollution in a certain area are difficult to predict. Many organisms have adapted to cope with a high amount of any kind of pollution in MUEs. The resulting ecosystems constitute environments that are vastly different from natural ecosystems and harbour their own species with new behaviour and interactions. It is making me a little bit sad seeing a fish housing in a plastic pot on the bottom of a harbour (Picture) but I can't help but wonder how the fish sees its strange home.
Discover our Rocky ReefsWe presented a video of the rocky reefs in the Patagonia Eco Film Fest. The video shows a diver explaining, underwater, what you are seeing (only in spanish at the moment).
link to video
Retracing to the Preparation stage, but we're back!
Due to the current worldwide pandemic state, the project has been on a standstill for several months now, but we're re-organizing and will start diving with our ROV soon!
Not much more to add right now, but we want to share with you some great news! Two distinct areas in the Ria Formosa are now protected, and forbidden to boat traffic, in order to protect our beloved Seahorses and the entire Ecosystem!
Because Nature keeps on and we want to keep doing what we love to protect her, we're definitely back!
seeyouunderwater
Nuno
The S.E.E. Initiative
Empowering people to explore and protect the ocean